The Asuka Clan

Breaking through the damp mossy smell permeating the rocky alcove, the party of four trundled into bright white light. Simultaneously there was a sharp popping sound as they entered and what was once a dark, dank cave instead stretched out into beautiful bountiful green. All of this was offset by smooth beams of crimson red towering upwards to form a large torii gate. The gateway shimmered imperceptible through the middle, and if you looked close enough, like really, really hard…you could see ripples broaching outward from that very same central point. Almost as if a little pebble had been dropped into it. On the other side you could barely make out the exact area they had just come from. At the sides of the gate stood two stone cold fox statues with closed eyes and nine delicately carved individual tails. Neither human had really noticed much of this, however, as their concentration was instead focused on the large wooden building at the center of the large clearing. It stood impressively wide, likely housing at most four or five different rooms and each of them overlooked fresh green, or an open zen garden situated right on the doorstep. It was also conveniently located next to a clear bubbling stream of water underneath the stone wall at the rear of the abode. It created a sense of freedom that neither Evelyn nor Michael had ever felt before in their lifetimes. The modern world had felt constricting, there was so much pressure that everyday was like waking up trapped behind walls of stone with absolutely no way out. Caged, alone and stuck in an endless loop.

Here…no, here it was a breath of fresh air. Quite literally! No pollution, no cars...and the only noise was the sound of life. Mizuki had already gone ahead while they admired the view and deposited their belongings on the lip of the partly elevated platform leading into the building. Sorrel had jumped out of Michael's arms and was now playing catch with the fluttering butterflies off to the side. The siblings, on the other hand, had already climbed up and on to the main floor with sprawled out open arms. Exhaustion was clearly written on their faces and etched throughout their bodies. Ryō was setting up the small inside fire to make drinks and food.

"You are safe here, I promise." The demon spoke and Michael briefly gave him the side eye.

"Forgive me for not believing you considering the last time you kept us 'safe'." Evelyn smacked him. "Ow!"

"Behave!"

"I…understand your hesitance," Mizuki shuffled to sit down, geta slipping from his feet. He sighed deeply in regret. "I erred." Pause. "Nevertheless, this place is protected." Michael shot up, angry.

"I find anything you say hard to believe right now! From what I can see we're just behind that damn what—wait, what the fuck!" He turned to point aggressively at the place that they'd come from and instead fell short in shock. Mizuki hid a smirk behind his hand. There was a certain smugness that seemed to roll of him in caressing waves.

"As I said…Protected."

"Yeah, but—what?! This doesn't make any sense!"

"Does anything make any sense anymore, Mikky? Ever since we crawled out of that cave my head has been a mess." Evelyn chimed.

"I mean sure, but--.." He trailed off into silence. Mizuki pulled out his pipe and began to prep the end with Elderviolet.

"Do you require explanation?" The white haired male cast a glance towards Ryō who was almost finished with his preparations.

"Well, yeah! That would be damn nice after everything we've gone through!"

"Michael!"

"Do not worry, Rin. I shall begin from how it came to be. It is a long tale; therefore, I suggest you sate your appetite and quench your thirst in the meantime…"

Hundreds of years ago the Asuka clan had been hunted viciously across the continents by their fellow kin. Their names were stricken from records and left to be forgotten to time. Why, you ask? Let me ask a question, then. Have you ever felt the utter feeling of absolute desperation? No? Well, imagine being told that everything you know and hold dear will vanish under the eternal fire of a creature so powerful that it was even given a name. A name that to this day strikes fear into those that hear it. What name, pray tell, is the cause of so much suffering?

The Heavenly Flame God.

This all started with one being. There had been a revered and well-loved prophet among the mortal and demon kind. She had foretold a fate so terrible. Death by purifying blue flames and the absence of the essence of all power. This, obviously, had not gone down very well and the reaction it brought took a turn for the worst. There was only one type of creature that spewed blue "cleansing" flame, and those were the Kitsune. So, naturally, what do those that fear such a thing do but start with the most cunning of them all, Tamamo-no-mae, an evil nine-tailed Kitsune who was shredded to pieces and contained within stone. In the future, stories would tell of a brave mortal who slew the ageless beast, but the majority of demons knew the truth…no matter how skewed it became over time.

Next, the larger clans were ambushed and burned at the stake in a mix of irony and fear…for they were lost by the very flames they cherished. Then lastly were the small houses, much like the Asuka clan, which were chased relentlessly across the land until each and every one of them were buried with arrows, blood staining the Earth.

By some miraculous fate, the Asuka clan had survived…They had created a hasty retreat, bound to their souls as its creation was only able to happen by their combined spiritual force. As it happened, the wife was heavily pregnant at the time and their unborn children had inadvertently released their own pocket of spiritual essence to aid them. A gateway engulfed their vision, and in the next…there was nothing. No cries, no screams, no death. Only the fresh scent of life.

The heretics searched and searched and searched, but they couldn't find them anywhere and over time they became known as the Lost. A blemish left to stain the hearts of all who failed to dispatch them. Yet as quick as they were to scorn them, the very same demons forgot their very existence. Leaving them and their secrets behind.

[Torii – traditional Japanese gate]

[Geta - traditional Japanese footwear resembling flip-flops]

[Kitsune - Japanese folklore, kitsune are foxes that possess paranormal abilities that increase as they get older and wiser. All have the ability to shapeshift into human forms.]